Temporal Genetic Changes and Resilient Responses of Oaks to Recent Environmental Changes

Antoine Kremer

Published May 2026 in International Oaks No. 37: 205–214

Abstract

While most temperate tree populations have been in place for several millennia, so far, no genetic diachronic approach has allowed us to grasp the time span needed to achieve local adaptation. Did trees evolve gradually over several generations during the post-glacial period or did adaptation proceed over much shorter time frames as short temporal pulses?

Herein, I review recent studies assessing temporal genetic changes over different time frames in Quercus petraea (sessile oak).

In the first case study presented here, evolutionary changes were assessed in multi-centennial trees during the transition between the Little Ice Age (1450-1850) and the Anthropocene warming (1850-today). The Little Ice Age was a period with repeated extreme cold events but also severe summer droughts documented by historical reports of tree mortalities and damages. Temperatures increased afterwards by more than 1.5 °C to present times. Significant temporal changes were found during the transition between the cold Little Ice Age and the Anthropocene warming at the genomic and phenotypic level.

In the second case study, genetic changes were tracked over two successive generations at contemporary time scales, during ongoing climate change. Here again, genetic shifts were observed for various adaptive traits.

I will further dissect the genetic mechanisms driving the temporal genetic changes that have ultimately contributed to the resilient responses to recent environmental changes.

Keywords

evolution, adaptation, climate change, Little Ice Age, Anthropocene, Quercus petraea

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